Art, Depression and Happiness

This past weekend I had a booth at a local art show. I ended up talking with an older gentleman about depression and how art saved him. I agreed with all that he said and realized that we went through the same thing. How amazing is it that Art can help your sanity, help you feel yourself again and not completely hopeless. How just by painting or drawing or writing or what ever you love to do, how just by doing that brings peace. What was different between us was that he didn’t need medication, me on the other hand… well, I am on a cocktail of meds that helped me get to the point to want to paint. To take that leap of faith and start putting paint to canvas, to start expressing myself and then started getting that desire to share it. The other interesting part was as I look back to other festivals I have done it never fails, I usually talk to someone who shares my story, who paints to remain sane. If I don’t paint or do something towards my love of painting I start getting grumpy and stagnant and I get this pull, this desire to paint and when I do all is good. Now don’t get me wrong, sometimes my paintings… well most of the time my paintings go through that stage where I hate it and feel like I have no talent but working through that gives me such happiness. Going through depression is not fun and I am by no means saying its easy to get out of by just painting alone, it took me a while to get to that point, that point to challenge myself to paint. To get my hands dirty once again, I loved doing it many years ago why not do what my dream has been and to make a studio and start painting. Maybe that is what its all about, finding that thing in your life that makes you happy. What is that one thing that makes you… you. What makes you feel special, what is your fairy talent? And then you get married, have kids and maybe get divorced and life takes over, the day to day takes over. Its like we need to reboot, to shut down a little and restart up again and remember what brings us happiness and how can we bring more of that into our lives. Even if its only at night when the kids are in bed, or on weekends. I think we owe it to ourselves to make a point to do more of what makes us happy. I would love to hear what makes you happy!! Peace to you all.

My latest piece, it started off with me not being happy with it and through out the piece I worked in it little by little not knowing what to do next and then it all just fell together for me.

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One thought on “Art, Depression and Happiness”

Dear Janine,
You are such a courageous and inspirational woman! Thank you for this great post – it is such a priviledge to know you and to have been witness of your blossoming into an artist and woman who gives herself the space to do what she loves, and thus, brings so much beauty to this world…
Hugs to you…
Isabelle